Californians will vote tomorrow on Assembly Bill 247, also known as Proposition 2, could allow public schools and community colleges to borrow $10 billion in bonds to fund the construction and modernization of public education facilities.
Proposition 2 will provide $8.5 billion to K-12 schools and $1.5 billion to community colleges throughout California if approved in the Nov. 5 election.
El Camino College could use the funds to repair and potentially replace the campus’s hydronic system, which uses pipes to pump water throughout the campus to heat and cool buildings.
The hydronic system would cost about $8 million to repair, the district would provide about $2 million while the state would contribute $6 million if Proposition 2 is approved.
Due to a hydronic malfunction last year, the Administration Building and Schauerman Library were closed from Nov. 16 to 18. The buildings’ temperature dropped, resulting in cold indoor temperatures.
“It affected our operations for that day or two,” Director of Public Information and Government Relations Kerri Webb said. “If we get the money from Proposition 2, if it passes, we’re going to completely overhaul that whole hydronic system.”
Webb said infrastructure issues at ECC are due to aging facilities.
“The college is like 78 years old,” Webb said.
Voters rejected Proposition 13, a $15 billion bond measure proposed in March 2020 to finance and improve construction projects for K–12 schools and higher education institutions, including California community colleges, California State University, and University of California systems.
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is in opposition to Proposition 2, arguing that the bond would only increase California’s debt.
“We are already in a budget emergency, and it’s not a good time to add these extra expenses to the annual when we are in a budget emergency,” Susan Shelley, the vice president of communications of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association said.
In alternative to the bonds, Shelley said California can use state budget dollars to help fix low-income schools that require significant maintenance upgrades.